The Ice Ninja: Yuki Takashi

Chapter 7: A Storm Approaches!

Deep within a forest near a large waterfall, Kurayami approaches a figure standing near the water. The figure was wearing the Tasogare cloak with their hood over their head blocking off any indication of their appearance. Just as Kurayami was about to get within fifty feet of the figure, an icicle smashed down directly in front of him.

"Kurayami, you should know better than to not announce yourself before coming close to me or you'll end up dead." The Figure said in a cold but carefree tone.

"My apologies, Leader – or should I say, Toyotomi Shimousa?" Kurayami asked kneeling down in front of the icicle as it melted away.

"Kurayami, what reason is there to bother me instead of looking for our honored guest, Yuki?" Toyotomi asked staring straight ahead towards the waterfall that lay before him about twenty yards.

"That is because Yuki has been found, Leader." Kurayami responded obediently.

"Oh? Where is dear old Yuki these days?" Toyotomi asked slowly raising his right arm with his palm facing the waterfall.

"He is in Mangetsu Village. I was not given the exact details but Raito Hōjō is currently watching him for the time being. We should be able to reach the village by the end of the day." Kurayami reported still kneeling.

"Then we will be there at dawn." Toyotomi said turning around to reveal only a small view of his light steel blue hair sticking out of the side of his hood while still hiding his face.

"Very well. I will do my best to keep up, Leader." Kurayami responded looking up to see the frozen waterfall. "H…he froze the waterfall with so little effort…?" He really has come a long way since I first met him." He thought with a smirk turning around to see Toyotomi had already left the area and was nowhere in sight. "He's even increased his speed… dramatically." He said rushing after Toyotomi with his large claymore-like sword on his back.

Back in Mangetsu Village, Yuki is sitting down on a chair in Kei's Tailor shop with Raito sitting across from him while Kei was hard at work on some kind of head plate.

"Why do people always find it fun to stalk me?" Yuki asked glancing over at Raito.

"It must be the latest trend. You should be grateful that you have such devoted followers that follow you even though there are many dangers in being near you… granted that Raito is one of those dangers." Kei commented with a slight chuckle.

"Quit talking like I'm not even here. And I'm neither a stalker nor a follower! I was ordered to keep an eye on Yuki until the Leader arrives and that is all! Once he arrives you will not see me again unless we are enemies! Got it!?" Raito shouted getting increasingly annoyed as he went on.

"Yeah, yeah. You could at least be a quieter stalker though…." Yuki said pulling out his book, Make Out Tactics.

"Hey! I told you I'm not a stalker!" Raito shouted angrily.

"Oh? Hmm, oh!" Yuki uttered not paying any attention to Raito while he was engrossed with the book.

"Hey! Hey!" Raito shouted looking at Yuki but he didn't even glance at him. "Old man, does he do this often?" He asked looking over at Kei.

"Yuki, your new head plate is nearly done. I just need to let the ink dry." Kei said ignoring Raito as he set the head plate down gently on his workbench.

"Good. I've wanted to get rid of this one for a long time but I wasn't just going to throw it away without having something to replace it." Yuki said pointing at his head plate on his head while still reading and ignoring Raito.

"So the both of you are in on this, huh? Fine, it's a good thing I was specifically told not to lay a finger on you!" Raito stated grumbling over in his chair with his arms crossed.

"Oh, did you say something?" Yuki asked glancing over at Raito.

"No, nothing at all." Raito replied grinding his teeth in annoyance.

"I was sure I heard something… no matter. I have to be going now anyway, so many jobs to do with so little time." Yuki said putting his book away while getting up from his seat.

"Jobs? What jobs?" Raito asked confused standing up following Yuki over to the door.

"Let's see… helping with the farms, assist the village police officers, and finally head back here for my new head plate." Yuki said walking out the door. "And you're going to be helping me as well."

"What a fun day… Wait, what did you say?" Raito asked realizing what Yuki had said at the end.

"If you're going to be stalking me then I'm going to use your labor to pay some of my bills and if you don't do it I'll just have to fight you. Which means you would have to take the beating, break your precious orders, or even just help me but that's all up to you." Yuki said shrugging as he started heading towards the farms south of the village.

"My choice huh…? Doesn't sound like much of a choice if you ask me – it's more of a threat but I have no choice but to assist you." Raito said annoyed following Yuki.

In the woods near the Leaf Village – Ayaka, Kazuki with Takeo on his back, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji had finally met up and were nearing the village when Shikamaru decided to ask a question.

"So, what exactly happened back there? I mean how did he get hit with the Tsukuyomi in the first place?" Shikamaru asked looking ahead at Kazuki and Ayaka.

"Yuki was fighting with Itachi and Takeo get in the way at the wrong time and got hit with the Tsukuyomi that was for Yuki." Kazuki responded seeing the gates of the Leaf Village in the distance.

"Is that really a good idea? I mean a Genin fighting an S-ranked criminal, isn't that dangerous?" Ino asked commenting on the response.

"Yeah but I'm surprised he's still alive." Shikamaru said obviously thinking about something.

"He said he had been fighting with Kisame before on par with him but Yuki said he was going easy on him." Kazuki said leaving Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji with a surprised look.

"Wait, this Genin is able to fight on par with an S-ranked criminal even when they're going easy on him? This doesn't add up at all." Shikamaru thought looking at Takeo suspiciously. "Has Takeo acted strange anytime he was with the two of you?"

"Shikamaru, what's up?" Choji asked looking over at Shikamaru.

"Just hear me out. Has he acted strange at all?" Shikamaru asked looking towards Ayaka and Kazuki.

"Not really, he could act a little less cold though." Ayaka responded looking over at Kazuki while he had a look of deep thought on his face. "Kazuki?"

"Huh? Oh, I was thinking about it. He did kind of vanish on us for a while back in Mangetsu Village after he said he was restocking the supplies but I didn't see him come back with anything." Kazuki replied as they arrived at the main gate.

"There has to be something going on here. This is just too suspicious. I'll have a talk with the Hokage before I take any actions though." Shikamaru thought as he followed behind the group through the large doors at the main gate. "Anyway, let's head over to the Hokage and see if we can get him taken care of."

Over the next hour or so Takeo was taken care of by Tsunade and left at the hospital to rest up. Ayaka and Kazuki were both also treated for slight injures and decided to stay at the hospital until Takeo woke up. Ino and Choji were quickly sent off on some other missions while Shikamaru stayed with Tsunade to talk about Takeo.

"What is it, Shikamaru?" Tsunade asked noticing he had the look of being lost in thought.

"That Genin – Takeo Furukawa – something just isn't right about him." Shikamaru said still troubled over the information he had stumbled on.

"Why is that?" Tsunade asked looking at Shikamaru as the two of them stood in the hallway of the hospital.

"Either he is a powerful Genin or he's a fake." Shikamaru replied still trying to put the pieces together.

"What do you mean by that?" Tsunade asked confused about the situation.

"For one thing, he seems to act like a certain someone that showed to be effect on someone for this village. But back to the point – Ayaka and Kazuki say he fought the Akatsuki member, Kisame Hoshigaki, on par while he was playing with him. This is highly unusual for a Genin but that's not the only thing, they said he disappeared for a while in Mangetsu Village to buy some supplies but nothing appeared to be purchased." Shikamaru said laying out some of the information he had come across.

"Are you sure it's not just their imagination? How can you be certain these claims could be possible?" Tsunade asked trying to get something more before making a decision on the next action.

"Don't you find it suspicious he just happened to tag along with the top new Genin from the Leaf and Snow Village? The very ones that would be his competition in the Chunin Exams if they had competed – not to mention he had said he had gone after them to make sure they didn't miss the Chunin Exams until Yuki arrived and suddenly he's working on this investigation with them." Shikamaru explained more of his reasoning.

"There does seem to be something to what you're saying but we can't just go and accuse him or his village of planning something unless we have proof." Tsunade responded with a sigh.

"That is what I was thinking as well since this could prove problematic for us and the Village Hidden in the Clouds if it were true. What do you propose we do about this problem?" Shikamaru asked looking at Tsunade.

"I think I have just the solution for this. We will know soon enough – come to my office later today before those Genin take off and I'll have your plan laid out." Tsunade said waving as she walked away.

"Man, why do I suddenly feel like I'm going to have to burden something… Can't I at least get a break for a little while? What a pain." Shikamaru thought putting his hands in his pockets while walking away down the hall.

Back at Mangetsu Village, Yuki had just finished with the farms with Raito directly behind him covered in mud while Yuki was perfectly clean.

"What the hell is with this!? How can you go to help and end up talking with the farmers perfectly fine inside while I have to stay outside and harvest the crops!? I'm a member of an elite organization of S-ranked criminals and I'm reduced to a mere laborer in mere seconds!? You truly are a demon! That is the only explanation I can think of – Yuki the Snow Demon!" Raito shouted pointing at Yuki from behind breathing a little hard.

"Quit shouting, I can hear you perfectly fine if you didn't shout. Besides, you said you would do as I said didn't you?" Yuki asked with a grin looking at Raito.

"Right… I did say something like that didn't I…? Wait! I never said I would do all the work!" Raito shouted angrily pointing furiously at Yuki.

"This guy is a real idiot isn't he? No matter – I'll just have some more fun with him before it's time to get serious." Yuki thought looking straight ahead lost in thought but watching where he was going.

"Hey! Are you even still listening to me…!?" Raito continued to shout when his foot went into a hole in the road leaving him stuck in place. "Damn it, wait up! I'm stuck!"

"It's all for the best I guess." Yuki said shrugging while continuing on without Raito. "I have to think of how I'm going to fight two Tasogare members at the same time… even if one of them is 'him'." He thought tightening his grip in anger.

In a few minutes he arrived at Kei's shop to figure out why he had sent a messenger to fetch him from his peaceful break at the farms. Yuki opened the door and walked in to see Kei standing at his work bench hitting a chisel with a hammer with a pleased look on his face.

"It's done and just in time!" Kei stated proudly while Yuki just looked at him confused. "Don't give me that look. One of your orders has been finished but the cloak will take a little longer."

"If it isn't the cloak then it's the head plate?" Yuki asked closing the door behind him.

"Yes, take a look at this beauty!" Kei stated proudly picking up a piece of powder blue cloth with a metal plate on it – it was a ninja headband but with some kanji written on it that read: Yuki.

"Now I have something decent to wear. This thing has too many things attached to it that has made it weigh a little too much for me to hold onto." Yuki said taking off his headband from the Village Hidden in the Rain and quickly replacing it with the new one. "Here, I don't need it anymore." He said handing Kei his old headband.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Kei asked looking at Yuki confused.

"Do what you please with it. I no longer have a use for it but I do need that cloak finished soon." Yuki said turning and walking towards the sitting area.

"Fine, I might have an idea for it but what's the hurry to finish the cloak? Does it have something to do with that material you gave me?" Kei asked thinking back to the night Yuki first arrived in the village.

"Yes. I need that cloak for an upcoming battle with 'him'."Yuki replied sitting down in a chair reaching back for his book: Make Out Tactics.

"Wait, you mean you're going to fight 'him' here in the village soon?" Kei asked surprised looking at Yuki.

"Yes, he's actually on his way here as we speak. That is why the doggy has been following me around – to make sure I don't try to leave before he arrives but something seems off. I only ran into the guy not long ago and 'he' already knows of my location." Yuki said reading his book while thinking aloud.

"Sounds like a relay setup." Kei said working on the cloak as fast as he can after hearing what was going to happen.

"'Relay setup'? You don't think that they set up a relay point…" Yuki said looking up from his book towards Kei.

"That's exactly what I think. They don't sound like idiots anymore and they might even be a force to reckon with compared to their early days. I wouldn't take this new version of the Tasogare lightly since we don't know exactly how many members there are or even how strong they are." Kei said looking over at Yuki while still working with his hands. "Which reminds me… what happened to that stray dog following you?"

"The idiot got stuck in a hole while trying to complain to me about how he had to do all the work at the farm. The Tasogare might just be filled with idiots like him so it's nothing to be too worried about but… 'he' is the only one I'm worried about at this point." Yuki said reading his book once again.

"Right, I might have to evacuate the village if this battle is going to take place here. Isn't there some other place you can take this fight to? I don't want to see Mangetsu Village destroyed." Kei said turning his attention back to his work.

"It might be too late to take it anywhere else if I know 'him' as well as I think I do." Yuki replied looking over at Kei.

"What do you mean by that?" Kei asked turning to see Yuki was looking at him with a very serious look on his face.

"He is most likely already in the village or nearby. If you want to evacuate the village, now is the time but I really need that cloak before he arrives." Yuki said turning his attention back to his book again.

"Already here…?" Kei asked standing there in a state of shock before he shook it off seconds later. "The cloak will be done in three minutes. Then, I will start the evacuation of the village but try not to start anything until I get everyone out." He said working frantically on the cloak.

"I will do my best not to but I cannot promise anything if I see his face." Yuki replied when the door opened and Raito walked inside.

"You're a really troublesome guy, you know that?" Raito asked looking over at Yuki while he walked in closing the door behind him.

"Really now? Maybe you should stop following me then?" Yuki asked slightly glancing over at Raito as he sat across from him.

"I cannot do that until the Leader arrives. Then and only then can I leave your side." Raito said looking outside the window behind Yuki. "A storm seems to be coming." He said noticing some clouds moving in as the sun was starting to set.

"So your precious leader is a little more behind schedule than I had expected. By now I would have expected it to be snowing in the village." Yuki said glancing out another window to see the dark gray clouds moving in from the north.

"Oh? You already know how he works?" Raito asked a bit surprised.

"Of course I do – I've already witnessed it during my time during the Civil War in the Village Hidden in the Rain." Yuki said putting his book away back in his pocket.

"So that's how it is – you both were in the Civil War together? How interesting, it must've been fun having an all out war and being able to cut loose on so many. Oh, I wish I would've been around for those battles. I would've enjoyed personally devastating their entire front line." Raito said with a grin on his face as Yuki stood up and headed towards the door.

"It was not something to be happy about. So many people lost their lives to a pointless war all because someone decides to play god. It makes me sick." Yuki said opening the door to the shop and stepping out to see the citizens of the village running to the south. "I need that cloak before he gets here but it looks like that won't be possible as long as there are people left in this village… It reminds me of that day – Taki, Masakatsu. I wonder how the two of you are doing now…" He thought looking up at the sky while the dark clouds moved in closer.

Back at the Leaf Village, Takeo quickly sat up in his hospital bed breathing hard completely covered in sweat with his eyes opened wide. The first thing he did was to see if his limbs were still in place and not cut off or removed as he had seen while trapped in Itachi's Tsukuyomi.

"Looks like I'm in one piece after all. But… what in the world was that and where am I?" Takeo asked confused noticing he was in a hospital.

"You are at the Leaf Village's hospital. You were hit with Itachi's Tsukuyomi and we brought you back here under orders from Sensei." Kazuki replied walking over to the bed with Ayaka.

"You really shouldn't do needless things like that. We're only Genin – there is no way we could even defeat S-ranked criminals." Ayaka scolded Takeo while glaring at him.

"You must be kidding. I was just unprepared for that attack… though, now that you mention it. He did say it was something called the Tsukuyomi in that… world? What in the world is that?" Takeo asked confused looking at Kazuki and Ayaka.

"That's to be expected. The Tsukuyomi is actually a kind of Genjutsu that only the Mangekyo Sharingan can perform, which means it's only an Uchiha that can use the jutsu. I only know what I heard around the village but they say it even took out Kakashi sensei. Even though his case wasn't that bad, they say it could've been a lot worse and he could've possibly never woken up if he didn't posses the skills to keep from losing it all... Looks like you pulled through though, even if it's hard to tell the difference." Ayaka said giving Takeo a mundane look.

"You don't look very happy to see I'm okay…" Takeo said looking at Ayaka with a glare. "Anyway, I will not fall for this attack twice. Next time we see those Akatsuki guys, I'll make sure to get my revenge."

"Revenge, huh? Are you really sure you want to go up against S-ranked criminals again so soon after ending up in the hospital?" Shikamaru asked leaning against the wall near the door with his arms crossed.

"Of course, I can handle my own against them." Takeo replied getting up off his bed wobbling a bit but able to stand.

"Shouldn't you be resting longer?" Kazuki asked looking at Takeo nearly falling over.

"I'm fine. Where is Yuki?"Takeo asked looking at Ayaka and Takeo.

"He's back at Mangetsu Village. We're supposed to meet up with him once we're all ready to go." Kazuki said handing Takeo his bag and equipment.

"You knew exactly what I was thinking. Maybe you're not as annoying as I thought you were." Takeo said putting his equipment on.

"Kazuki, are you sure that's a good idea?" Ayaka asked worried about Takeo's condition.

"I'm sure. He would do the same for me if I was in his position – I'm just returning the favor." Kazuki replied walking towards the door glancing over at Shikamaru on his way out with Takeo following behind him.

"Don't worry about it – it's a guy thing." Takeo said walking out the door ready to head off.

"You're just going to let someone in his condition walk out of the hospital?" Ayaka asked glaring angrily at Shikamaru.

"Hey, don't bring me into this. He looked perfectly fit to me." Shikamaru said turning and walking out of the room leaving Ayaka to be the only person left. "This is such a drag. I can't even figure that kid out that easily… oh right, I'm supposed to go see the Hokage." He thought walking down the hall with his hands in his pockets.

"Geez, they all just left me here? I'll get those two idiots back!" Ayaka shouted steaming as she left the room after them grabbing her bag on the way out.

Half a mile to the north of Mangetsu Village, Toyotomi and Kurayami stopped near a hill overlooking the village.

"It looks empty. Are you sure Yuki is still there?" Toyotomi asked looking at the village with the dark clouds now above the village.

"Yes. As long as Raito is doing his job – Yuki should still be there. Besides, doesn't Yuki want to kill you?" Kurayami asked looking over at the hooded Toyotomi.

"Indeed. After all we were part of the same team during the eradication of the old regime in the Village Hidden in the Rain." Toyotomi said with a smirk putting his right hand out with his palm flat facing the village. "Now to turn this dump of a village into the ideal negotiation spot for Yuki and me." He said with a grin while snow started to fall all over the village at a steady speed.

"Negotiation?" Kurayami asked confused looking at Toyotomi.

"But of course. We cannot just overlook him now that the Akatsuki no longer has a chance in gaining him. We must get his assistance no matter the cost, do not kill him but subdue him – that is our overall objective." Toyotomi said heading down the hill towards the village.

"So our overall objective is to get Yuki to join us at any cost in order to take on the Akatsuki. Why should we even allow that ingrate to join our ranks? We should just kill him." Kurayami said before he started following Toyotomi down the hill.

"Did you say something, Kurayami?" Toyotomi asked stopping in his tracks.

"No. Nothing at all." Kurayami said obviously lying.

"I thought I only heard the wind whistling with my precious snow falling down from the sky." Toyotomi said continuing to walk again.

"Just what is this guy thinking trying to bring that Yuki Takashi into our ranks? Though I've never seen the guy, I have heard he was a brilliant fighter and partner of Toyotomi back during the Rain Villages Civil War but he can't be serious! That guy was also a member of the Akatsuki – an enemy." Kurayami thought getting even more frustrated the more he thought about it.

Meanwhile back at Kei's shop, Kei was putting the final touches on the cloak as fast as he could while Yuki was reading his book: Make Out Tactics when he noticed the snow coming down outside.

"He's here." Yuki said putting his book in his pocket.

"Things will be getting interesting from this point on." Raito said starting to get hyped up.

"Kei, how is the cloak doing, any progress?" Yuki asked turning to Kei as he stood up.

"Two more stitches and it should be done." Kei replied while Raito looked at Yuki suspiciously.

"What is so special about that cloak? You keep asking about it every few minutes." Raito said noticing the desperation for the cloak to be finished.

"I do not like to fight without a cloak of some kind… besides; this one is a special one." Yuki replied walking over towards Kei.

"Special one, what do you mean?" Raito asked standing up looking towards Yuki and Kei.

"It is done." Kei said handing Yuki the finished cloak with the symbol in Yuki's eye stitched on the back of it.

"It has the emblem of my clan on it." Yuki said turning around and showing the emblem on the back of the cloak before he put it on.

The cloak seemed to match up perfectly with him as if it were perfectly made for him and him alone. That was Kei's specialty and one of the main reasons he always has Kei do his tailoring. Yuki turned towards Kei and pulled the hood up on his head.

"Kei, you've done enough. It has been a big help but now you should leave the village as well." Yuki said turning towards Raito. "Let's go see your so-called leader." He said walking towards the door with Raito leading the way.

"Yuki, you better survive because I want extra pay for the rush job!" Kei said packing his tools up quickly.

"Yeah, I'll see you again and pay you back for the nice work." Yuki said walking out the door while Kei went out the back.

"Good to see you've given in and finally ready to face the Leader." Raito said leading Yuki towards the central section of the city.

"'Given in'? I have not given into anything except for me wanting to meet with your Leader so I can kill him." Yuki said following Raito until they arrived in the center of the village, which was a large round clearing spanning around ten to twenty yards from the center in every direction.

"Like we would let you do that." Raito said standing in the center looking around when he noticed two figures coming in from the north.

Toyotomi and Kurayami were walking towards Yuki and Raito down the road directly to the north of them. In no time, Toyotomi and Kurayami were in the center of the town just outside the radius looking at Yuki and Raito.

"Good work, Raito. This is Yuki Takashi, correct?" Kurayami asked looking at the hooded Yuki.

"Yes, I am Yuki Takashi." Yuki said removing his hood revealing his face.

"W…what is this!?" Kurayami asked shocked seeing Yuki's face.

"You noticed too, huh? I was a bit surprised as well but now I know why Leader wanted to find Yuki." Raito said with a smirk looking at Kurayami's expression.

"Toyotomi Shimousa, at last we meet again. Are you ready to finish what we started years ago?" Yuki asked glaring at Toyotomi intensely.

"Why greet me so formally?" Toyotomi asked moving his hood back to reveal his long light steel blue hair and blue eyes exactly like Yuki's, including the symbol on the pupils. "Dear brother, you do not have to refer to me so formally – after all, we're family aren't we, Yuki Shimousa."

"B…brother? Don't tell me that he is your brother, Toyotomi?" Kurayami asked in total shock looking at Toyotomi.

"Yes, my older brother." Toyotomi replied leaving Kurayami to fall into a deeper state of shock while also starting to surprise Raito.

"Older brother? Could this mean Yuki is at least as powerful as Toyotomi?" Raito thought looking at Yuki.

"That's right, I used to be Yuki Shimousa back when the Shimousa clan was still alive but thanks to you… there is no longer a Shimousa clan. Now that we have the introductions out of the way, how about we get down to your death, Toyotomi?!" Yuki shouted ready to kill Toyotomi when Raito and Kurayami quickly jumped in between Yuki and Toyotomi.

"I'm sorry big brother but I am not here to die just yet. Not even to fight with you in fact but to ask you to join us in our ongoing battles with the Akatsuki since we both know they are planning to kill you." Toyotomi said standing behind the two Tasogare members.

"Don't think I will join you after all that's happened. We will eventually come to a point where we fight one another until one of us is dead so why don't we do that now and get it over with. What do you say little brother?" Yuki asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Fine, if you think I'm as weak as I was back then, you are sadly mistaken. You two – step aside, I will show my brother why it is best to join us instead of being against us." Toyotomi said stepping out in front of Kurayami and Raito.

"Leader…?" Raito asked surprised.

"Toyotomi, we should fight alongside you." Kurayami said wanting a piece of Yuki to find out how strong he was.

"No. I will handle my family matters myself." Toyotomi said looking at Yuki. "So, you got another new cloak I see – even a new headband. Not bad big brother but it's a shame it'll be torn apart once again."

"Really now, you think I'm as weak as I was back then as well? You would be wrong to think that and this time I won't let you live!" Yuki shouted angrily.

Author Notes:

Everything is now sorted out, this week's chapter ended up getting pushed back an entire week but next week I should be back on track.

-Steve Masters